1. Field of Invention
This invention is related to the structure of braces used in musical instruments, such as, but not limited to guitars, violins, cellos, basses, mandolins, ouds and lutes.
2. Description of the Related Art
The braces in musical instruments are strips, usually made of wood, glued to the top and back plates of the instruments. Bracing types and bracing patterns have shown to be of great importance to instrument construction and define the instruments voicing and the luthier's identity. Presently there are two types of braces used by luthiers. These are the straight braces and the scalloped braces. Straight braces are long rectangular pieces of thinly cut wood that may be shaped “scalloped” only at the ends. Scalloped braces are scalloped not only at the ends but also along the length of the brace. Scalloped braces tend to be lighter and more flexible than the straight braces. These two types of braces are made of non-kerfed strips and, due to their relative rigidity, tend to eliminate or dampen the oscillations of the top (back) plate along the direction of the braces. This damping effect is more pronounced for the allowed higher frequencies oscillations of the top and back plates.
Braces are used singly or in-groups making a pattern, such as honeycomb, fan, or lattice bracing patterns. Bracing patterns and bracing types are both used to control the strength, volume, and voicing of the instrument. The proposed invention addresses a new bracing type, namely the kerfed brace, and does not concern itself with bracing patterns.